3 Bass Limit

[Gustopher]

My jazz, a fretless jazz and a Jack Casady.

 

[DirtDog]

If for some reason you were only allowed 3 basses, what would your 3 be and why?

I’m at three basses right now - a PJ, and MM and a Squier Bass VI. I have plans for a fretless parts build, so maybe I could slot the Bass VI into another category.

I’ve limited myself to 3 electric guitars, three acoustic and three lap/pedal steel.

Need a final category of “other” to accommodate a couple more!

15 would be the final number!

 

[OnePunchMan]

Precision, Jazz, StingRay.

I could possibly replace the Precision and Jazz with a PJ and make room for a Fretless.

 

[bucephylus]

 

[LowEndOperative]

I have my three.

 

[Jonny Reese]

I have the cliché trio (Fender P, Fender J, EBMM Sterling) plus an 8-string, which I am telling myself doesn't count.

I feel strong temptation to trade my J for a Cirrus 5, which of course I used to own and sold for some inexplicable reason. That was a phenomenal instrument.

 

[Acoustic356]

What is the "3" multiplied by? 4?

 

[TNCreature]

that third one could swap with my Warwick $$ Corvette. It's a coin toss

 

[Discount Bassy]

1) G. Gould GGi-5 (current)
2) G. Gould Ggi-6 Fretless (proposed/in the works)
3) A good, solid no-name 4 string beater to lend out to friends/students

 

[Sam Evans]

The only three that I own.

 

[H K]

My MIJ Fender J in black paisley with flats
A danelectro 64 with halfrounds
4003 fireglo rick or ovation magnum 1 with rounds

The J for the classic j sound, the dano for versatility, and the rick/ovation for the rough roundwound sound in stereo.

 

[2112]

If I bass (see what I did there?) my quiver on my favorite basses to play:

• USA Elite Jazz 4-banger with Audere 4-tone preamp.
• USA Geddy Lee Jazz 4-banger w/Tom Brantley and BAII bridge.
• Ash PJ 4-banger with USA Geddy neck, GZR neck pup, Tom Brantley Geddy bridge pup.

If I bass cool it strictly upon utility:

• PJ fiver rounds
• PJ fiver flats
• Stingray 5HH rounds

I'd just have to find a way to learn to love fivers.

 

[Eon Sky]

Three basses...per gig?

 

[tb-player]

I feel like the correct TalkBass answer is a P, a J and a Stingray. But I’d probably have to swap the P for an über-fancy MTD and swap the Stingray for a nice 5-string fretless. And the J would have to be from around 1962.

 

[Jeremy Crockett]

I am in the amazingly blessed position to be 2/3 of the way there:

One Precision:

One Jazz:

Number three; I am moderately GASing for a Jack Casady in Sparkling Burgundy:

Hopefully, I can get my debt down to the point where I can get into debt again with the Casady before the next price increase.

 

[geeza]

Precision
Jazz bass
Rick

All 4 stingers

 

[bassdude51]

An SCPB slab body. Because they are just sooooo cool.
A split coil P Bass. Because a P Bass covers over 75% of bass needs and sounds.
A Jazz Bass. Because it can get all the necessary sounds that a P can't do.

 

[Methaneman]

My Hammersmith 5, G&L fretless L2000, and the first bass I ever played that belonged to my high school band program (which I now own) a 84-87 E series MIJ Fender P bass with flats.

I'm not going to narrow down to three. But if I had to those would be it. And I could cover LOTS of sonic ground with those three.

What is E series ? Is there a deference from other Fender P bass ?

 

[BigDrew]

Fender American Precision
Music Man Sabre
Music Man Bongo

All four string

 

[rudy4444]

I believe the official rule is "Total number of basses = greatest number of strings on any bass in your collection".
As an example, if you play a 5 string bass then it's permissible to own 5 basses in total.

In my case I recently sold off my EUB and 3/4 upright and I'm down to a 30" fretless and a 30" fretted. I'm considering building a 32" mid-scale 4 string fretted so that would bring me up to the "Ideal 3".

I think that going through a mental "housecleaning" does at least clarify what a player really likes, and therefore can eliminate extra basically underplayed instruments that do little other than complicate your playing life.